News from the Graduate Program in Critical & Creative Thinking
University of Massachusetts Boston25 March 2019
Student Matters
Summer 2019 courses open for registration. For course details, see the descriptions, and enroll through WISER (current students) or here, for non-degree registration.
CrCrTh 612 Seminar in Creativity (Theme: Creative Realization of Ideas)
Synchronous Online, May 28 - July 11, 2019.
Register for class #2222.
CrCrTh 618 Creative Thinking, Collaboration, and Organizational Change
All-day workshops on Friday and Saturday over three consecutive weeks.
9:00am-4:15pm, July 12-13, July 19-20, July 26-27, 2019; Format: Hybrid (on campus, with option for online participation).
Register for class #2225 (on-campus participation) or class #2223 (online participation).
CrCrTh 619 Biomedical Ethics
Online, July 15 - August 22, 2019. Register for class #2224.
UMass Boston Graduate Studies has just released the latest Graduate Catalog. The catalog contains updated information on all policies and procedures related to graduate programs.
CCT Community
This upcoming spring marks the 40th anniversary of the CCT Program and
will be celebrated by a one-day conference. See below under Events.
Climate Change: It's About Us (CommonWealth magazine)
This article was developed collaboratively by CCT and other students taking a fall 2018 course "Sustainability Science: Environment, Economy, Equity". This course, taught by UMass Biology faculty Reinmar Seidler and Kamaljit Bawa, focuses on sustainability science as an emerging field that combines biology, ecology, economics, and sociology to understand complex issues such as climate change, globalization, population growth, and biodiversity.
CCT Events
Sunday, May 5, 2019, 8:45am-5:15pm in Arlington, MA, with evening reception/dinner to follow for local participants who can join.
Journeys: Changing Our Schools, Workplaces, and Lives
A conference-workshop to mark 40 years of the Graduate Program in Critical & Creative Thinking
Participate in person or online. Open to all.
During this one-day conference-workshop, we will create spaces,
interactions, and support that help us recognize and extend the changes
that we—students, alums, faculty, and associates from CCT's 40
years—have made in our schools, workplaces, and lives.
Preparing for and participating in this conference-workshop will provide
an opportunity to reflect on ways that developing as a critical,
creative and reflective practitioner is like a journey into unfamiliar
areas—journeying involves risk, opens up questions, creates more
experiences than can be integrated at first, requires support, and
yields personal and professional change. See the web site for more details and as new information is added.
Alum and CCT associates Notes
CCT alums and associates are encouraged to send items of interest to
the Critical and Creative Thinking community to be included in future
newsletters. Please submit events, announcements, and opportunities
through this form: http://bit.ly/CCTSICWi
EventsArts Advocacy Day
March 26, 2019
Downtown Boston, MA
Emerson Paramount Center in downtown Boston and an early afternoon at the State House
Various events, talks, and public meetings from 9:00-6:00pm
See the schedule for program of events.
Second Annual Creativity Conference
July 11- 14, 2019
Southern Oregon University
Ashland, Oregon
For registration and program information, see the web site.
XQ Super School Live
Various cities, from Feb. 28th through March 30th.
A 7-city immersive storytelling tour to inspire people to reimagine high schools. A night of high school drama full of stories, selfie confessionals, viral gratitude, and multimedia adventures that celebrate the everyday heroes transforming America's high schools.
For more information and tickets to remaining upcoming events, see the web site.
Conference: STEM Institute for Improving Student Engagement and Outcomes
May 20 - 22, 2019, Atlanta, GA
Sponsored by Academic Impressions
Many institutions struggle to attract and retain STEM students, especially from within historically underrepresented demographics. Oftentimes, incoming STEM students enter higher education underprepared to handle the rigor of academic programs, resulting in higher attrition rates. Even minor improvements in the curriculum, student support, and faculty training can have a considerable impact on retention and satisfaction rates. This program will combine student support, pedagogy, and rethinking curriculum and spaces in a way that impacts student engagement, retention, and success.
For program details and registration information, see the web site.
The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) is seeking master’s and doctoral students to teach a 5-6 week, non-credit enrichment course in their area of study or an area of personal interest (1.5 hours per week). OLLI is a lifelong learning program for adults 50 and older at UMass Boston. Part of the Gerontology Institute at the John W. McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies, OLLI has over 1,100 retired and semi-retired members who are enthusiastic and motivated learners. Teaching with OLLI is an excellent way for graduate students to develop a course and engage with a friendly audience, receiving guidance and mentorship along the way. Upon completion of teaching the course with positive evaluations, students will receive a $500 stipend. Applications to teach during OLLI’s 2019 fall semester (September - December) are due by April 8, 2019. To apply, a student must submit: 1) Course Proposal Form available on the OLLI website at https://www.umb.edu/olli/about/teach 2) A brief outline of the course plan; 3) A brief bio and resume; 4) A reference (letter or email) from a UMass Boston faculty member. Submissions and questions should be directed to Cathy Phillips at catherine.phillips@umb.edu or proposalolli@gmail.com. More information about the OLLI program and types of courses is also available on our website at www.olli.umb.edu.
Fund for the Public Interest, a national non-profit organization that runs campaigns for some of the nation’s most prominent environmental and social change organizations, such as Environment America and U.S. PIRG, is currently hiring students and college graduates as citizen outreach and Field Manager positions in 25 cities across the country. Students will get the opportunity to gain first-hand experience in grassroots organizing, learn valuable communication skills and have the opportunity to participate in a variety of campaign actions including: running media events, coalition building, canvassing, and writing editorials, all while being paid as members of our staff. Our staff typically earn an average of $6,000-8,000 over the summer. Want to spend your summer building skills that will help you launch your career, while working on urgent issues you care about like protecting the environment and our public health, and making good money?
Find out more and apply at www.summerjobsthatmatter.org.
We are also hiring for career positions for college graduates. To apply online, visit www.fundjobs.org.
The Lifelong Kindergarten Group at the MIT Media Lab has recently released version 3.0 of Scratch, a visual programming language that can be used to teach concepts of programming to students of all ages. The Scratch software is free to all, and extensive materials are available to support teachers and learners. For more information, see https://scratch.mit.edu/
25 Of The Best Resources For Teaching Critical Thinking (TeachThought)
Food for Thought
(additional web links and posts can also be found on CCT's Diigo pages. General critical and creative thinking focus: https://groups.diigo.com/group/ccreflect; Science in a Changing World focus: https://groups.diigo.com/group/sicwumb)
Video:
Patton Oswalt Reveals What Keeps Creative People From Creating (YouTube)
Blue Sky Science: Why are snowflakes individually unique? (Vimeo)
Articles:
Boston City Council Passes Groundbreaking Food Justice Ordinance (Common Dreams)
Helping those with Down syndrome find their (comedic) voice (Canton Representative)
UMass plans national online college aimed at adult learners (Boston Globe)
The People Who Eat the Same Lunch Every Day (The Atlantic)
Big Magic: Elizabeth Gilbert on Creative Courage and the Art of Living in a State of Uninterrupted Marvel (Brain Pickings)
Critical Thinking – Teaching the “Book Report” as a Critical Essay (KQED)
Does Playing Music for Cheese During the Aging Process Change Its Flavor? Researchers Find That Hip Hop Makes It Smellier, and Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” Makes It Milder (Open Culture)
The Creativity of ADHD (Scientific American)
Seven Stages in Moving from Consuming to Creating (John Spencer)
Elementary Schoolers' Interviews Show the Crippling Effects of Math Anxiety (Inverse)
Boost your creativity by developing your “distant thinking” skills (Quartz)
World Wants Science to Solve Global Problems, Even as Skepticism Grows (AP News)
Humor
No One Noticed What This Woman Was Staring At When They Chose Her For Their Label (Good)